“Prayers for Bobby” and More on Lesbian and Gay Youth

A few weeks ago, I wrote a piece about new research showing the devastating impact of family rejection on lesbian and gay youth.

Tonight, Lifetime television will air “Prayers for Bobby,” the true story of a religious suburban mother in the 1970’s who struggled to accept that her son Bobby was gay. It airs Saturday, January 24th at 9PM ET/PT. There are photos, cast interviews, and a trailer on the show’s Web site. If that’s not enough to convince you to watch, Sigourney Weaver is the star.

Completing the trifecta of recent media about growing up gay or lesbian is the just-published Crisis: 40 Stories Revealing the Personal, Social, and Religious Pain and Trauma of Growing Up Gay in America, a compilation edited by Mitchell Gold (of furniture fame). Gold is also the founder of Faith in America, an organization dedicated to ending religion-based bigotry.

Let’s hope these materials about lesbian and gay youth have a catalytic effect on each other to drive greater awareness and change.